Old Town defeats Foxcroft in regular season finale
By Larry Mahoney
BDN Staff
OLD TOWN — The Foxcroft Academy field hockey team certainly did enough to win Oct. 14’s regular season finale against Old Town.
But sophomore goalie Corinne Saucier turned in a terrific 17-save performance and junior Brooke Sulinski tipped home an Olivia King shot with 22:31 remaining in regulation to supply the Coyotes with a 2-1 victory.
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UP THE FIELD — Foxcroft Academy’s Alli Bourget moves the ball past Old Town’s Lauren Gasaway during their field hockey game Oct. 14 in Old Town. The Coyotes won the mutual regular season finale, 2-1.
Both teams wound up 12-2.
Foxcroft outshot Old Town 22-2 in the first half, but the Ponies found themselves locked in a 1-1 tie at intermission as Madison Fadley answered freshman King’s game-opening goal and Saucier kept her team in the game.
King tucked her own rebound into the short side to open the scoring before Fadley converted on one of Foxcroft Academy’s 13 first-half penalty corners with a 10-yard shot into the near corner.
Old Town played much better in the second half, competing much harder for the ball and not allowing the Ponies to keep them pinned in their defensive third for long stretches.
Foxcroft Academy had just a 6-4 edge in shots in the second half.
“Coach [Jamie Flagg] had a good pep talk for us at halftime,” said Sulinski. “She said we had to step it up in the second half and we did.”
The game-winner resulted from a nice individual effort by the speedy King, who freed herself down the right side of the penalty circle and fired a hard, low shot from a tight angle to the left of Foxcroft Academy back-up goalie Sujeong Kim.
“I was just trying to get it on net. I didn’t know where it was going,” said King.
“I was trying to sweep in front, and I got a little bit of a tip on it,” said Sulinski. “But it was mostly Olivia’s goal.”
Kim was playing in place of Madison Chadbourne, who had been away on a trip.
The Ponies pressed for an equalizer, but Saucier came up with three stellar saves.
First, Mackenzie Beaudry’s powerful shot from the top of the circle found Mariah Poulin at the far post only for Saucier to extend over and stop the bid.
“I got a little bit of [Poulin’s shot] it with my chest,” she said.
Moments later, the dynamic Alli Bourget broke in alone with a nearby defender chasing her, but Saucier charged out and smothered the shot as the three players collided.
Her best save came with two minutes left after Bourget made another scintillating run, and this time she separated herself from the defender.
“I could tell she had momentum and was going to get past my girls, so I prepared myself. I told myself I had to make this save for my team, they’re depending on me,” said Saucier. “At the last second, I saw her drop her head and commit [to the shot], so I came out to the penalty stroke line [seven yards in front of the goal], stuck out my right foot and was able to get it.”
“It just wasn’t meant to be, I guess,” said Foxcroft Academy coach Stephanie Smith. “We had a lot of opportunities. Our girls played really hard, and they played well.”
Besides Saucier, King and Sulinski, Megan Grindle and Lauren Gasaway shone for Old Town, while the Bourget twins, Abbi and Alli, Fadley, Becca Anderson and Emily Curtis were constant threats for Foxcroft Academy.
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ON TO THE POSTSEASON — Foxcroft Academy’s Lexi Raymond clears the ball past Old Town’s Olivia King. The Ponies finished 2015 with a record of 12-2 to earn the third seed in the Class B North playoffs.
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EYES ON THE BALL — Foxcroft Academy’s Cailin Seavey and Old Town’s Brooke Sulinski battle for the ball during last Wednesday’s game.
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THIRD AND FIFTH –– Old Town’s Olivia King fights with Foxcroft Academy’s Avery Carroll for control of the ball. In the Class B North playoffs the Ponies will be seeded third and Old Town will be the fifth seed.